I'm sharing this since I figured I've already posted resources about theory, algorithms and the programming project but none for the math part of the specification. For those have no idea what "the math part of the specification" is, let me break it down for you.
Firstly, you only need to know these for the Computer Systems exam i.e. the "theory" one. There are only 2 sections of the spec that refer to mathematical skills you need to know and trust me, this isn't the type of maths you are thinking about. The math is simple, you just need to be able to deal with:
- Binary calculations, conversions and represntations (check 1.4.1 Data Types in spec for details)
- Deriving, manipulating and simplifying Boolean algebra (check 1.4.3 Boolean Algebra in spec for details)
The terms mentioned above may seem unfamiliar and therefore difficult but believe me, these skills are very easy to learn and should present no problems whatsoever in the final exam once you know it.
So now comes the question. how do you learn it? Well, there are loads of resources on binary and Boolean algebra that don't even have to be OCR specific to be useful. As with any math, practice makes perfect so the more exercises you do the better you'll be at solving these types of questions. This post will cover binary and I will address Boolean algebra in another post InShaAllah
This guide is only 1 page that includes a quick guide on certain rules in binary e.g. addition and two's complement rules, a few floating point representation exercises and even a binary fraction lookup table. The exercises don't come with answers strangely but I plan to make a model answers document to couple with this so you can check your answers InShaAllah.
Anyway's I think it's a nice document to have even if it's just one page.
Here's the link: OCR A Level Computer Science Floating Point Representation Guide
Hope this helps!
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